


Gate Music

by melagan



Category: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: Community: romancingmcshep, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-04
Updated: 2014-02-04
Packaged: 2018-01-11 04:11:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,793
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1168516
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/melagan/pseuds/melagan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Of all the strange things Pegasus has thrown at them this one might might actually be useful.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Gate Music

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the Romancing McShep Fest 2014
> 
>  
> 
> Beta credit to the lovely Mischief but any mistakes are all mine.

John nearly skidded to a halt when he stepped through the gate. Rodney's shoulder mashed into his and he grabbed onto Rodney's tac vest before they tripped each other up and landed on their asses. He yanked them both upright, grateful he'd sent Ronon and Teyla through first to secure the perimeter. 

Blue sky, trees, grass, and clouds that looked completely normal. The hair rose on the back of John's neck. Nothing here should have been making that sound.

"Did you hear that?" Rodney asked. He pulled his scanner out and waved it at the Stargate. 

"Yeah. Uh—" John checked the safety on his P-90, shaking off his unease. "What exactly do you think you heard, McKay?"

"It's ring-song," Ronon said, looking stunned. A slow smile crept across his face. 

Frowning, Rodney glared at Ronon. "Gate music. Not exactly what I'd call Rachmaninoff, but yes." He threw up his hands. "Excuse me, but doesn’t that seem unusual to anyone else? We step through the gate and music plays. I shouldn't need to point out that an impromptu serenade is not the typical result of gate travel. Not even in this galaxy."

"It's creepy." John resisted the unreasonable urge to look over his shoulder. 

Teyla, with a twinkle in her eye, drew in a breath to speak then hesitated. 

"Teyla? You want to tell us what you know about this, preferably before McKay starts panicking." John raised a hand, pointing to the gate. "Is this something we need to worry about?"

"I do not believe there is need for concern. I have heard stories about the music of the gates." She cast a glance at Ronon. Whatever she saw in his expression encouraged her to continue. "While no one has heard them sing in many years, the stories all tell of great happiness." 

Rodney rolled his eyes and snorted. "And we've never heard that one before." He tapped the surface of his scanner. "I'm detecting a power signature coming from the gate. Odd. If anything, I would have expected it from the DHD."

John peered over his shoulder. "How much power? Is it something we can use?"

"You’re thinking about making a weapon out of music? Of course you are." He snapped his fingers. "Sonics! With enough power and at the right frequency…" He immediately cast his attention back to the readings.

"Yeah," John said, "like the way a good soprano can break glass." 

"Exactly!" Rodney began hooking leads to one of the Stargate's chevrons. "Acoustic vibrations. If we hit the right frequency, we could quite literally shake a hive ship out of the sky." 

Teyla arched an inquisitive eyebrow. 

"Opera singers. They usually have big…" John gestured across his chest. "Ah, voices, big voices, and they can hit really high notes. You know what, Rodney will dig up a vid to show you when we get back." 

"Ah, vocal pitch." She placed her hand on John's arm, a vicious gleam in her eye. "I look forward to seeing this video. Will Rodney also be describing the big… voices?"

John froze. Ronon earned his undying gratitude when he came up and slapped a hand down on his shoulder. 

"A sound weapon," Ronon said. "McKay can make this work?"

"I'm right here, and yes, I can make this work. Probably. Well, possibly." Rodney stood and dusted off his knees. "Teyla, how many gates do your people say make this sound? Sheppard, we should get a science team working on this. I can get Radek to head it. He's not entirely inadequate and he's got some interesting theories about using the Stargates as a power source."

"You think we can we loop the gates together," John said. "Get them to all sound off at the same time, focus them together in one direction."

"Like a sonic boom? Maybe. Ideally. But for this to work, we have to find the right frequency."

"I'll have Lorne put a team together. See if we can capture a Dart."

"But this is not what the gate music means," Teyla insisted, looking frustrated. 

Ronon put his hand on her shoulder. "Maybe the gate can do both. Be a weapon—"

"—and a prophet?" She shook her head. "It's wrong. Ronon, you know this."

"Look, guys, whatever your problem is, it'll have to wait. We need to get this information back to Dr. Weir." John turned to see if Rodney needed any help but McKay had already packed up and was ready to go. 

He turned back to see Ronon and Teyla exchange an unhappy look. Frankly, John found their lack of enthusiasm baffling. This could their most powerful weapon against the Wraith yet, at least once McKay figured it out.

~*~

He found a handy wall to lean against and watched the show. Rodney paced up down the length of the lab, hands and mouth moving with equal exuberance. Just as the other lab rats looked about to rebel, John asked, "Do you want to go back to the planet?"

Rodney stopped mid-stride and the rest of the scientists took it as their cue to scramble out of the lab. His mouth was tilted in a sad, sorry line, matching the droop in his shoulders when he answered, "Well, not specifically, no. How many times have we been back, John? A dozen? And we've never heard the music again." 

"Teyla did say it was a rare occurrence."

Rodney's shoulders slumped and John resisted the urge to go over and pat him on the back—in a manly way. "Any progress with Radek's team?"

Rodney snorted. 

"Yeah, I figured. Look, buddy, since this is going nowhere, why don't we go down and look at the Dart Lorne brought back." 

Rodney's face lightened and John did a mental 'score one'. On the way out the door, he elbowed Rodney in the ribs. "You'll figure this out, McKay."

"I just don't understand it," Rodney said. "We did everything the same. Same planet, same time of day—I even wore the same underwear."

"Yeah, didn't need to know that." John grinned back at Rodney. 

"John, I'm serious. What if I can't figure it out?"

Head bent, John rubbed at the nape of his neck and considered his next words. "We could always go ask Halling, like Teyla suggested."

"Was Halling there? No. So I don't see how his input could do anything to help," Rodney groused.

"Uh-huh. And you losing sleep over this problem isn't doing any of us any good. Hate to tell you this, buddy, but raccoon eyes are not a good look on you." John grabbed Rodney by the elbow and tugged him along. "Time for a change of scenery."

If nothing else good came out of the day, at least John succeeded in distracting Rodney. Lorne greeted them in the hanger, an extra swagger in his step, and as proud as a peacock because his team took the Dart down.

"I heard you had some excitement, Major," John said. 

"Yes, sir. But it worked out all right in the end. You should have seen the scientists when we brought her in completely intact."

Bemused, John watched as Rodney began overseeing the scans running on multiple laptops, talking a mile a minute with Radek, and jabbing at the whiteboard with the red marker of doom. "Yeah, I'm getting that."

"Do you really think they can make this work, Colonel?" Lorne asked.

"As much as I hate to say it, it's not looking good. We still don't know what caused the Gate to sound like that in the first place."

"Have you talked to Teyla?" Lorne asked. 

John pinched the bridge of his nose. "Been trying to avoid it."

"You know what she's going to say and you're…" Lorne turned to look at Rodney. He was leaning halfway into the Dart attaching a lead to something. Grease had smeared across one bicep and his shirt had ridden up, revealing a pale crescent of skin at his waist. "Ah, I think I get it. You know what it is and you don't want to tell McKay."

~*~

Teyla slid her bantos rods back in their leather case. Her workout with Ronon had gone well despite a new bruise on her hip. Ronon had not gotten off so easy.

"You were distracted." Ronon said. "Is it about the music?"

She sighed. "John refuses to listen. Rodney is equally…"

"Jebba-headed?"

"Yes. Much like that large bird that Elizabeth says hides its head in the sand. Rodney has taken pains to duplicate the event that made the gate song. Yet he fails to walk through the gate touching John as they did that first time."

"Maybe he doesn't remember?"

"Then perhaps he and John need to be reminded." She cocked her head at Ronon. "I have practice with John later. Perhaps it is time to practice that expression of—knocking some sense into him."

Ronon winced. "Ouch."

Her smile turned feral. "You can talk to Rodney. Explain to him that the music of the rings is not a weapon. It is a blessing."

"I'm not sure I'm the best person for that. McKay doesn't listen—"

She cut his words off with a gesture. "Find a way. Or would you rather talk to John?"

"Uh, no. Sheppard listens even worse than McKay does. He pretends he's paying attention and then makes some stupid Earth reference I don't understand." The corner of his mouth curled up in a sly smile. "Hey, can I hit sense into McKay too?"

"No, you cannot." With a sigh, Teyla shooed him on his way. Judging by the bounce in his step, Ronon was looking forward to this a lot more than she was.

~*~

They stood in front of the gate, both avoiding eye contact. John had stared down Wraith and never felt this nervous. He had no P-90 for backup this time, just his pistol. Rodney had his laptop, though; John didn't have to look at him to know that.

He rubbed at the back of his neck, still staring at the gate room floor. "Teyla seemed pretty certain…" John grimaced. "She went on for a while about relationships and awareness. Listening to the obvious and stuff."

"Fun. Ronon caught up with me. I got to hear about Teyla's folk tale in detail. And when I say detail, I mean he pinned me down and I had to listen to five stanzas of guttural poetry. I think Chuck's been teaching him Klingon. If not, he should be. Ronon's a natural." Rodney shifted on his feet before lifting his chin and looking John in the eye. "So, uh, maybe she's not totally wrong." 

John nodded, mouth gone dry. "So you're here."

Rodney looked around the gate room and shrugged. "I'm here.

"We—" John gestured between them. "How should we do this?"

"According to Ronon, we need to be touching." Rodney reached out and grabbed John's hand, holding tight. "This way," he said, nodding firmly. "We walk through the gate together. If this doesn't work, we'll try something else next time."

John let Rodney's confidence seep into him. If McKay could do this, so could he. He nodded sharply at Chuck. "Dial the gate."

The whoosh of wormhole stabilized and held. Judging by the way Rodney's hand squeezed his, John wasn't the only one feeling a tad overwhelmed. Unless that was just a twitch. "Feeling a little jumpy, McKay?" 

"No." For the first time since they stepped into the gate room, Rodney looked him square in the face. "Maybe. This means something. I just can't figure it out."

Done talking, John kept their fingers laced together and they walked through the Stargate.

The moment they stepped through to the other side, they heard it. 

"Oh my god." Rodney turned in a circle, arms flung up in surprise. "I know Teyla said — but I never believed it. John?"

"Yeah, um, I kinda did." John shifted from foot to foot, already missing the warmth and support of Rodney's hand. 

"You did? And you weren't going to include me in on this particular insight? Why in hell not?"

"Look, the music played. It's working." He ducked his head, feeling his cheeks start to burn. "Let's just go back." 

"Fine," Rodney snapped. "I'll send set up a timetable we can both work with and a team to monitor our progress. Do what you want about security."

"Rodney, I can't. I just—no." Walking over to the DHD, John began dialing the city's address and doing his damnedest to ignore Rodney's shocked stare.

When they stepped into Atlantis, the first thing John saw was Ronon and Teyla standing there with expectant looks on their faces. Then he heard Elizabeth's voice.

"Well, gentlemen, did it work?" she asked, running down the stairs to greet them. 

"Sorry." Rodney cast a sideways glance at John. "It didn't work." 

"Oh." Elizabeth's face fell. "I suppose it was too much to hope for."

"Precisely. Giving scientific credence to rumor and folktales? Bah, we should have all known better. Honestly, I don't know why I let all of you carry on the farce this long—"

"Rodney. That's enough!" Elizabeth turned to John. "You really have nothing to report?"

Since the floor failed to swallow John up, he had to answer. "Uh, what he said."

"But," Rodney interrupted, "we have a fully functional Dart. If you're done with us, I'll have Radek send you everything we have on it within the hour."

A frown hovered between Elizabeth's brows. "Fine," she finally said, "You can go."

John brushed past her, careful not to look Teyla or Ronon in the eye.

~*~

He should have known Rodney had his back. John sat on his bed, staring down at his hands, and wondered what to do next. According to Teyla, the gate sang for them because he and Rodney were destined to be together. Right now, John believed that with all his heart. He just had no idea what to do about it.

It was a relief to hear a knock and Rodney's voice at his door. 

"Sheppard—John, can I come in?"

"Yeah. Sure." He didn't have any idea what would happen next but his chest felt lighter.

They stood awkwardly facing each other.

Uncertain and nervous, John took a half step forward. "So you're here."

Rodney spread his hands and offered an uncertain smile. "I'm here."

A smile cracked across John's face. Rodney hadn't left him hanging in the gate room and he wasn't leaving him hanging now. "I thought you didn't believe in destiny?"

"I never said that." Rodney pushed denial away with a wave. "Anyway…" Pausing, he lifted his chin, temporary defiance in the very line of his shoulders. "I don't have to believe in destiny to believe in you."

"We —" John bit his lip. "How should we do this?" 

"Oh god, how many ways are there?" Rodney paled and looked ready to panic. 

Strangely enough, that made John feel better and he gave Rodney's shoulders a reassuring squeeze. "Hey, buddy, how about we keep it simple?"

"Yes! Simple is good." Rodney relaxed into John's touch, head bent, and his next words were muffled against his shoulder. "I thought about this."

"This? Us this?" John rested his hand against the warm nape of Rodney's neck and thought carefully about his next words. "I didn't. No, don't pull away. I mean I got good at not thinking about it. Because it was something — something to not think about." 

Rodney huffed, breath tickling John's neck. "I actually understood that," he said. He stood up straight and stared John in the face. "It wasn't an accident that we were touching when we went through the gate. You did it on purpose! You—you wanted to touch me! You like touching me!"

"Yes, Rodney. I do like touching you, and I'd like to touch a lot more of you if you'd just take your damn clothes off!"

"Oh." 

They'd gotten down to their boxers without too much awkwardness. John took that for a win and reached out to feel up Rodney's nipples. He pouted when Rodney twisted away. "Hey!" 

"Just give me a minute." Rodney held up a camera and started fiddling with its settings.

"Jesus, McKay, you're planning to take pictures?" John snatched the camera out of his hands, tossing it onto the desk. "Forget it."

"No, no, this is a good idea! I thought that if I recorded our mistakes, I wouldn't make them next time." Rodney failed to get around John's body block as he tried to snatch the camera back.

"This — we — are not an object of study. I thought you understood that." Pinning him by the shoulders, John studied the expression on Rodney's face. Something there didn't fit, didn't match McKay's unholy enthusiasm for scientific study. "This isn't about _that,_ is it? The gate music? You're really worried about doing this wrong?" 

Rodney stared down at the floor. "I just want to be good at this. If I do something wrong, I want to know so I can fix it. I — I want you to want to do this again — with me."

"Dofus." John ran his hand down the side of Rodney's face, tilting his chin up so he could look him in the eyes. "You're not going to do it wrong, and even if you did, didn't anyone ever tell you mistakes could be fun?"

"No. No, I can honestly say no one has ever said that to me." Rodney clutched at John's shoulders with a grip that matched the desperation in his voice. "I—I don't want you to go through the Stargate trying to touch someone else."

"Rodney, I'm not going to do that. I couldn't." 

"Not even if it meant powering up a weapon we could use against the Wraith?"

"Not even." Done with talking, John kissed Rodney to shut him up. He meant it to be a quick kiss but Rodney's mouth moved under his and suddenly John couldn't get enough. He held Rodney's face in his hands, needing him to stay right where he was while John learned the taste of his mouth. Thank god, they were on the same page because Rodney opened his mouth for him. 

Given a choice, John would have spent hours there; as it was, it hurt to stop and come up for air. Rodney must have felt the same because he whimpered and tried to drag John back. 

"Wait. I have an idea." John slid his hands into Rodney's cotton boxers and eased them down, taking care not to catch the elastic band on delicate skin. His own were poked out just as badly and he was equally careful, ignoring the damp spot for now. 

"Bed, Rodney. C'mon, it's only eight steps away. You can do it." John guided him by the elbow, smug as hell that he'd put that look of utter dazed lust on Rodney's face.

"What if…"

"What if I put your cock in my mouth and sucked it?"

Rodney scrambled up on the bed without another word. He lay on his back, eyes wide, and cock fully erect and waiting. 

John caught his breath. Seeing Rodney like this, his body John's for the taking, was like hitting Mach Two without a flight suit. For a brief, dizzying minute, he wished he'd said yes to that camera.

He licked his lips and moved in for his approach. His target was unsteady, moving with every beat of Rodney's hitching breath, but he'd dealt with wind shear before, he could do this. He just needed to — yes — get a grip. John steadied Rodney's cock with one hand, marveling at its fragile heat. That helped and Rodney seemed to appreciate it. Target acquired, he leaned down and gave it a tentative lick. Urged on by Rodney's moan and his own, sudden fascination, John began to lick every inch of Rodney's cock. Root to tip, a swirl of tongue — Rodney really seemed to appreciate that maneuver — and back down to the root again. 

"John, please."

"Hmm? What?" He could feel how wet his chin was, smeared with Rodney's precome. John stroked a finger across it, gathering up what moisture he could, and stuck it in his mouth. 

"Oh, fuck." Rodney grabbed John and pulled him into a kiss. Arms, elbows, legs, knees tangled together in potential disaster. 

To John's surprise, getting hit with a knee to the groin or an elbow to his eye never happened. Instead, they fit together as though they'd always fit together, only now they were actually doing it. He couldn't help but run his hands over Rodney's lush skin. 

He gained a new appreciation for the strength in Rodney's arms when he grabbed John by the ass and tugged him snug against him. John groaned when his cock bumped against Rodney's. Rubbing off against a naked, horny Rodney McKay made John's blood pound and his gut ache for more. 

"Jesus, I can't believe you worried about doing this wrong," John panted in his ear. "If you did it anymore right, I'd be a dead man."

Rodney didn't even bother answering; he just reached down between them, hands doing something glorious to John's cock. He dug his fingers into Rodney's hips and held on. Screw gate music, Rodney was devising an entire symphony with John's body. 

With a shift of his hips, Rodney blurted, "Oh—that's—I'm going to —"

"Yeah, do it. I want to see you — oh, fuck." John fought to hang on, but the moment he felt Rodney tremble and come, wetness spreading between them, the game was over. With a groan, John shuddered, adding his own jizz to the mix. Throughout it all, Rodney held him steady in his arms. 

"Did you hear that?" Rodney whispered.

"Did it sound like an echo of the gate song?" John whispered back.

"Yes."

"Nope, didn't hear a thing."

~*~

John woke up with his head pillowed on Rodney's chest. He snagged a corner of the blanket to wipe up his puddle of drool, being very careful not to wake his sleeping partner. It didn't work.

"John?"

"Right here, buddy." He laced his fingers with Rodney's and held on. Something was going on in that busy brain and Rodney's expression looked too concerned for it to be good. 

"Will the music be gone now? Now that we're…" He held up their linked hands. 

"You mean did we just lose any chance making a sonic weapon using the gates?" John shrugged. "Probably."

"Oh. Do you mind?" Rodney asked, looking worried.

"Well, now…" John leaned over, sweetly kissing Rodney's mouth before laying his head down to listen to the strong, rhythmic beat of Rodney's heart. This was music, the only kind he needed. "It's a funny thing," he said, hiding a smile, "but I don't mind at all."

~~*~~


End file.
